The former Valencia man wasn’t part of Getafe’s squad for their 1-0 at home to Malaga on Friday night but according to the manager Pepe Bordalas, the club are not intending to let the keeper out of their sight until his contract expires with them in June.

The confusion over what it will take to set the wheels in motion over a transfer seems to stem from the “official” release clause in Guaita’s contract (€8 million) and the one that he and the club’s chairman agreed to in private (€4 million). Quite why Getafe would allow such a thing to take place is up for debate but clearly, from the player’s perspective, he felt as though any offer from the Eagles of more than €4 million would be enough to set him free.

Whilst Guaita has been performing fantastically well so far this term and is obviously at home in Spain, the prospect of earning a reported £60,000 a week at Selhurst Park is obviously enticing, prompting his representatives to do everything they can to convince Getafe to loosen their stance.

Depending on who you believe in the Spanish press, there is some suggestion that the club’s hierarchy are softening to the idea of a sale this month but you would imagine there will have to be some more movement from our side of the negotiating table over the fee in prospect.

Although the keeper’s “official” release clause is €8 million, I would imagine that a bid of somewhere between €5-6 million would be enough to push a deal through. In reality, no club wants an unhappy goalkeeper with five months left to run on their contract, it’s just a case of finding a figure that is agreeable to all parties in the here and now.

You’d like to think that there would be some sort of solution found to this particular conundrum over the next few days but given the way the saga has unfolded so far, I wouldn’t hold your breath.